Page 25 of Unexpected Delivery

My system doesn’t seem to comprehend that Gracie isn’t mine, and some primal part of me is even more attracted to the fact Arbor just created life.

Maybe it’s weird.

I don’t know.

I’ve never been attracted to a pregnant woman or one with a baby, but civilization has worshipped fertility and the female body for millennia.

It also could be some combination of natural attraction and her pheromones.

Alpha and omega dynamics are complicated. Hell, for all I know, her body could be releasing pheromones specifically meant to entice her alphas to stay close to protect her and the baby during their most vulnerable time. Her system just doesn’t understand she doesn’t have a pack, so at this point, she’s attracting random strangers.

Theno packthing is still hard to process. She only mentioned one guy, and that’s not the norm for our culture.

“I seem to have a problem,” Arbor says with a tremble in her voice that I instantly hate.

I’ve been watching over Gracie with my back facing Arbor to give her privacy, but I spin around. She holds a bra to her chest and the hospital gown kinda draped over her bottom half.

“I can’t get it clipped, and every time I try to stretch back, I get intense cramps.” Her head shakes, and when she meets my gaze again, her eyes sparkle like she might burst into tears at any second. “I didn’t want to put my dress on without a bra because I’m afraid my boobs will leak, and they hurt really bad. I’m so sorry. I know I’m not your responsibility?—”

I stride around to where she stands on the other side of the hospital bed, and before I know what I’m doing, my arms are wrapped around her.

“I’m wearing a diaper,” she says, burying her nose in my chest. “I just said that to a stranger.”

I chuckle, running my hand down her spine. “Let’s face it, we’re way past that.” Nuzzling my cheek to the top of her head soothes me, so I sure as fuck hope it helps settle her frayed edges.

Hael and I have four dads, and our mom is the omega. Even the thought of my mom or little sister being in Arbor’s situation makes my skin crawl.

Omegas don’t handle stress well. It’s one of those defining characteristics of their designation. They’re meant to have a whole pack of alphas around to help cater to their needs.

She smells so good—like fresh, dewy rain and something I can’t describe. Maybe that electric smell that comes after bad weather?

Is that even a thing?

Fuck if I know, but either way, she smells likemine.

“The nurse helped me shower everything but my hair earlier, but I was beat, and you guys hadn’t brought up the bags yet.” She sighs. “I’m tired, Hayes.”

“I know you are.” I relocate both hands to the back of her bra that hangs open and tug them together to work on getting it hooked. I think I line them up okay. There aren’t any extra hooks once I’m done. Patting her back, I kiss the top of her head. “Okay, this is the dress?” I snag the soft navy blue thing from the top of the pile and shake it out.

“That’s the overcoat or robe. The dress is this.” She points, and I swap out for that.

Arbor lifts her arms, and the material falls to her knees as I help her into it. The top has a crisscross style that will make it simpler to breastfeed. The bottom has two slits down the front, but it falls together in some way that prevents any skin from showing. I’m sure that will make it easy for the nurses to continue the massaging necessary to shrink her uterus and allow easy access if they need to check anything.

“Do you need the restroom?” I ask, collecting the robe.

“I do, but I’m supposed to call the nurse.” She slides her arms into the garment.

“Why don’t you do that? I’ll handle marking off Gracie’s feeding and check her diaper.” I do my best to mimic Hael’s lazy smile. The one that seems to make women melt when he flashes it their way. “Once that’s done, we can both get a little rest.”

Arbor gives a tentative nod. “Thanks, Hayes.”

Chapter Ten

Hael

I’m relieved to find Hayes in Arbor’s room by the time we make it back.

Morris has armfuls of bags from the cafeteria, but what was supposed to be a quick trip took way longer than planned. We had to wait close to thirty minutes for it to open.

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